2008 Budget Book - Kitsap County Government

68
Law & Justice
Juvenile
Purpose:
The Juvenile Department is committed to providing innovative, comprehensive, and effective services to
youth, families, and the community within a quality environment, by professional, caring staff. Key
services provided by the Juvenile Department:
• Maintaining the balance between community protection, treatment and accountability for youth
arrested for criminal activity.
• Provide diversion services to first-time juvenile offenders who are held accountable for their
criminal behavior.
• Monitoring court-ordered compliance of youth on community supervision.
• We have a Drug Court, Treatment Court, and a new Chemical Dependency Treatment Program
that addresses both prevention and intervention services for chemical dependency and mental
health needs of our youth.
• Evaluation and assessment of youth to determine risk to re-offend and appropriate
services/treatment to support the goal of keeping youth at home, in school, and out of the legal
system.
• Services for truants, at-risk youth, abused and neglected children, as well as Guardian ad
litem/investigative services in domestic relations matters.
• We operate both a 24/7 Juvenile Detention Facility and a secure Crisis Residential Center, which
service the needs and sanctions of criminal offenders and status offenders alike.
• We provide a transition school, Kitsap Alternative Transition School (“KATS”) that is available to
youth on probation who have been long-term suspended or expelled, with a mentoring
component provided through a Community Mobilization Grant.
2007 Accomplishments:
• Kitsap Adolescent Recovery Services (KARS) was officially approved as a DASA-certified
outpatient chemical dependency treatment program.
• 95% of the youth served by our Truancy Intervention program returned to school or another
school program.
• Recruited twenty-six (26) Court Appointed Special Advocate volunteers.
• Legislature authorized increased spending for CASA Programs. Kitsap County share is in excess
of $226,864 over a two year period, which translates to one and a half (1.5) FTE positions and
expansion costs.
• Kitsap County came into compliance with National CASA Standards for Member Programs.
• Non-Offender Unit Supervisor invited to participate on the National CASA Quality Assurance
Board.
• In partnership with the Department of Ecology, performed quarterly litter control on a 22- mile
stretch of Highway 3.
• The Alternatives to Detention Program saved $232,256 during the last biennium in Secure Bed
Day costs.
2008 Goals & Objectives:
• We will contribute to Safe and Healthy Communities and Effective and Efficient County
Services by providing enhanced services to the community by reducing the caseloads of the
Court Services Officers supervising moderate to high-risk offenders.
• We will contribute to Safe and Healthy Communities and Effective and Efficient County
Services by providing enhanced services to the community by reducing the caseloads of the
Court Services Officers working with dependent children.
• We will contribute to Safe and Healthy Communities and Effective and Efficient County
Services through enhanced services to the community by increasing the number of youth served
by a Truancy Interventionist.
• We will contribute to Safe and Healthy Communities and Effective and Efficient County
Services by providing programs that are effective in reducing felony recidivism and cost efficient
to taxpayers.